Rins gaining confidence after ‘great’ test

Alex Rins confirmed both his and Suzuki’s potential with a quietly impressive showing at the first MotoGP test of 2018.

The former Moto2 and Moto3 runner-up was a fine sixth overall, with his personal best time of 1m 59.348s more than half a second quicker than his qualifying effort at the same track last October.

That Rins posted the time while using Suzuki's new engine and chassis suggests the factory is on the right course; the 22-year old also evaluated a new electronics settings across the three days, as well as new Ohlins forks.

Coupled with solid showings on day one and two at Sepang, Rins proved that he could well be a constant in the top six fight through 2018, his performance suggesting Suzuki has made solid, intelligent gains over the winter.

“Today was also a really great day,” said Rins on Tuesday evening. “I think we finished these three days of testing with really good impressions. We tried a lot of things. We tried a new engine, new forks, a bit of electronics changes. Also everything worked really good.

“What I feel with the new engine is that it is more powerful at the bottom. There is more acceleration.

“For sure there is more confidence that last year because with more experience and three days of testing, it’s really good. We can adjust very well the bike. I think I don’t have pressure. I need to go step-by-step and enjoy the bike.”

As well as the speed, Rins showed impressive pace; a mini-race simulation around mid-day confirmed the Spaniard could comfortably run low-mid 2m 0s laps with track temperatures soaring. 

“We tried a race simulation and it went well, good race pace,” he said, “and this is important not only for confidence but for giving good feedback to Japan about their work. We tried new forks and they were also good and we worked in the electronics area as well.”